Roland Daggett
Roland Daggett was a business entrepreneur. His company competed with Wayne Enterprises, which left Daggett resorting to dubious schemes to gain the competitive edge. History The Renuyu Cream and Clayface Roland Daggett was the owner and CEO of Daggett Industries, which specialized in chemicals among other things. The company was large enough to compete with Wayne Enterprises, but Daggett preferred to undermine his competition from the inside. To do so, he needed help. Daggett's scientists developed the Renuyu cream, a cream that allowed the wearer to reconfigure his or her face to whatever he or she wanted by loosening the facial cells of the user, and presented it as a skin conditioner. Secretly, the cream was addictive and fatal in larger doses; this did not deter Daggett from trying to secure a future for it as his flagship product. When stores in Gotham refused to market Renuyu because of its harmful effects, Daggett realized he still had a chance, by overtaking Wayne Industries through insider trading. He then employed the talents of actor Matt Hagen, who was disfigured in an accident years before, and who had been an addict of Renuyu for such a time, always remaining at Daggett's side for more of the cream. Daggett had Hagen impersonate Bruce Wayne and attempt to acquire the evidence Wayne Enterprises had built against him by eliminating Lucius Fox. The job was foiled when Batman arrived on the scene. Irritated and concerned that Fox could incriminate Daggett by revealing what he carried in is suitcase that night, Daggett ordered the assassination of Hagen. Germs and Raymond Bell, who captured Hagen when the he broke into Daggett Labs for more of the Renuyu formula, did not kill Hagen outright, but hyper-exposed him to the chemical by forcing him to ingest an entire canister of Renuyu, unintentionally but severely changing the man's cellular structure. Daggett continued his plan to take over Wayne Enterprises to acquire its marketing network. With Hagen out of the way, he revised his takeover plan, and ordered Germs to assassinate Lucius. Meanwhile, Daggett began to heavily advertise the Renuyu cream. In an interview with Summer Gleeson, he showed the amazing properties of the chemical, and impressed many potential buyers: a potential that was lost when Clayface revealed himself from the audience and displayed the chemical's dangerous properties. Though Batman arrived and stopped Clayface, Daggett was arrested for his criminal acts. Crime Alley and Catwoman Daggett eluded the charges, and continued his business life. He became interested in Crime Alley, or rather, the potential Crime Alley had. The area was a slums, and with some major renovation could be turned into a profitable area. When the City Council rejected Daggett's proposal, he took matters into his own hands. Contacting the demolitions expert Nitro, he and Crocker planned falsify a disaster and destroy the area, rendering it uninhabitable and a cheap source of prospective land. As a "courtesy" to the inhabitants of Crime Alley, Daggett's men tried to warn them to leave the home. However, they had no where else to go, and refused. Force was the next action of choice, and that decision quickly attracted the attention of Batman, in the area for a meeting with Leslie Thompkins. When Batman was late, Thompkins began her own investigation, and needed mere moments before she came across Daggett's men setting explosives. The men captured and bound her to the detonation room. Daggett's plan had the entire area detonating at 9 PM while he delivered a speech at the Gotham Better Business Council Dinner, and to an extent, he succeeded. However, Batman disarmed the bombs at the major areas, and Daggett's men only managed to destroy a few condemned buildings. Quick to save his image, Daggett played the innocent fool and claimed no involvement with the arson. Batman very nearly pursued him himself in anger, but was stopped by the only consolation that Daggett wouldn't escape the law forever. Daggett continued to search for ways to quickly build his reputation. In his latest one, he had his henchmen Paunch and Jessy round up every stray animal in town. After meeting Dr. Milo, he employed the scientist to create a deadly virus. This virus had varying effects: it made animals feral and crazed, while humans became weak and sick shortly after exposure. Milo also created an antigen, which Daggett quickly mass produced. Their plan was simple: infect the numerous stray animals of Gotham City with the virus, then act as the sole distributor of the cure. The effects would be two-fold: Daggett would become incredibly wealthy, and he'd be viewed as a hero in the public eye. What Daggett didn't prepare for was the unlikely intervention of Catwoman. Recently out on parole, Selina Kyle discovered her cat, Isis, was missing from her home. Searching for her precious pet, she stumbled across Daggett's thugs capturing strays. After some investigation, she found Isis, and learned of the plot firsthand from Daggett himself. However, Isis had been infected just like the other strays, and in her deranged state bit Selina. Catwoman fled, but the virus quickly took hold. Had Batman not arrived, she may have died. Batman wasted no time searching for evidence, and found everything he needed in Daggett's warehouse. He broke up the conspiracy, but Daggett once again plead innocence. Daggett's numerous failed operations left him struggling financially, and he disappeared from the crime scene. However, when the Jade Cat Statuette visited Gotham Museum, he saw it as an opportunity to begin again. Knowing that criminal blame would be placed upon Catwoman, he arranged for the theft of the statue. Catwoman, however, wasn't about to sit idly by and take the fall for a crime she didn't commit...yet. With the help of Batgirl, she tracked Daggett back to the same lab the Renuyu formula was created in. Daggett was prepared, and ambushed the two women. His opponents captured, he planned to kill them in the laboratory's chemical vats. Robin's timely arrival, however, saved the ladies' lives, and Daggett was arrested. Equipment and Abilities Roland Daggett had no particular abilities of his own. In fact, he avoided getting his hands dirty at every possible opportunity. He was an intelligent businessman, and had his own agenda been a little less illegal, he may have been very successful. Though he never used any equipment, he did have access to Daggett Industries, which (at the very least) produced the Renuyu cream and an unnamed virus. Additionally, Daggett had several henchmen, thugs, and underground connections. These people frequently did his dirty work for him. Appearances *"Feat of Clay" *"Appointment in Crime Alley" *"Cat Scratch Fever" *"The Strange Secret of Bruce Wayne" *"Batgirl Returns" Daggett, Roland Daggett, Roland